On Unplanned Vacations And Emergency Funds…

Hey guys! Did you miss me? I was away again for quite a while because I have been busy with work. Over the weekend, I was once again out of town to attend my project’s team building event. And a week before that, my honey and I joined our teammates on an escapade to the Hundred Islands and Bolinao, Pangasinan. If you guys are planning on taking a vacation in Bolinao, do yourself a favor by not checking in to [i won't mention the name but will give the link to that f'n resort]. Here’s why:

1. The owner will offer a breakfast set of boneless bangus (milkfish), fried rice, fried egg, and coffee for Php150. It will take an hour before they serve small pieces of danggit, fried rice, and fried egg. The coffee, you’ll have to mix it by yourself. And then you’ll ask, where the hell is the boneless bangus? It’s gone. Because it was never there in the first place. Good luck on your breakfast.
2. If you are scheduled to check in at 12:00 PM, they will start cleaning the room at 12:30 PM.
3. They will charge you Php100 to cook 15 pieces of jumbo hotdog that you bought from the market.
4. Out of the 15, they will only serve 9. Because they sold the other 6 to other visitors already.
5. Water in the rest rooms are almost as salty as the seawater. You can say the same thing with pool water.
6. When there is a power failure, you will be left in the dark because there is no backup generator. All this while the visitors from the neighboring resort sing their heart out in the videoke.

Fortunately, our colleagues did a great job of planning the activities for this vacation. In just two days, we were able to go to most of the tourist spots in Bolinao and of course, the Hundred Islands. Also on our way home, we were even able to buy our favorite Starbucks drink. All this for only Php2,300. Although unplanned, the Pangasinan vacation was worth it.

Unplanned vacations can really mess up one’s finances. Fortunately, I have been building an emergency fund that easily covered for this unexpected expenditure. I intend to replenish what was spent though. And to make sure I don’t miss all the fun, I’m gonna start a vacation fund. Check out my progress in building my emergency fund and other goals at the Financial Goals page. Watch out for my birthday post.